2008 Presidential Election and Pain Meds – The Jury on Giuliani
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| Photo: Alex WongGetty Images |
2008 is a presidential election year. So what does that have to do with chronic back pain? The link is to the narcotic pain medication, Oxycontin. For 6 years, Oxycontin was illegally and aggressively marketed to unsuspecting family physicians who do not routinely treat pain. The Oxycontin campaign reaped $1 billion in sales for the company. An unexpected outcome of the marketing campaign, which provided easy access to the drug, was that it became readily available on the street. Consequently many people got hooked and, according to the DEA, several hundred died due to related complications.
In May of this year, I blogged about the admission of guilt in court by Purdue Pharma’s top 3 guys (Purdue manufacturers Oxycontin.) A new article in the New York Times now reveals that in 2002, Republican presidential hopeful Rudy Giuliani sold the use of his good name and standing, along with his political clout to help Purdue out of its legal troubles. Giuliani was a trusted public figure and Purdue needed some crisis management PR – it was a match. But some now speculate that the liaison enabled the Purdue execs to avoid jail time.
While we’re talking about the politics of drugs, here’s some news: At least one region of the United States is now adopting a people protecting policy that requires sales reps of drug companies to be licensed. This month the Council of the District of Columbia voted in the SafeRx Act of 2007. Among other things the Act seeks to hold the conduct of sales reps to a high level of standard. Bravo, D.C.!
And, finally, many doctors make substantial supplemental incomes by giving talks about specific medications to their peers on behalf of drug companies. If you are interested in understanding how that gig goes, you might want to read Daniel Carlat’s article, “Dr. Drug Rep” in the New York Times. It reads a bit like a confession and is bound to shed light on Big Pharma sales practices that make use of MDs, especially, according to the article, their clout and pull, rather than their scientific knowledge.
Comments
I agree with the excess amount of prescriptions written by physicians for narcotics.
As an individual with RSD who lives in constant pain, and after several years of searching I actually found a physician who specializes in pharmaceuticals.
This is especially important for those of us who suffer from additional medical issues (myself-heart disease)and the need for all my medicines to work together. Not to mention having one doctor who oversees ALL prescriptions, and who is there for any bad interactions!
It is time for the government to require that doctors be mandated to update their personal knowledge of pain and pain management. Somewhere there has to be a stop to the outrageous profits seen by the pharmaceutical industry.
Finally, overall these so-called “assist programs” offered by these companies needs a thorough investigation! At a fixed income, which is less then $100.00 then my mortgage, every company I have tried to get aid from has denied me. WHY: Because I have Medicare Part D, through a supplemental insurance which costs me $80.00+ a month out of the remaining $100.00 noted above! So who are they helping?
Narcotic meds are dangerous, but there is a geniune need for them. Those of us who have this need should have NO problem if regulations are tightened. So Be It. Maybe those ‘abusing’ these meds will get stuck with paying the bill-they obviously can afford to pay-off the right officials. Let ‘em pay for those of us who cannot.